UPMC working to iron out issues as patients grapple with patient portal, medical record transition

By JOSH EWERS
TribLive

Following a UPMC computer system upgrade last week, patients have complained of multiple problems, ranging from being unable to access the MyUPMC patient portal, missing information and increased wait times at medical facilities.

Years in the making, the technical transition moves the MyUPMC patient portal to a system powered by Epic Systems Corporation, creator of the MyChart healthcare information system. The move further entails unifying UPMC’s electronic health records from nine separate platforms to one systemwide.

UPMC Chief Information Officer Chris Carmody said staff are working on quelling outstanding issues in the coming “days and weeks,” calling this a “stabilization period” typical for an operation at such a scale.

Planning for the move began in 2021. “This was one of the most complex technology transformations in UPMC’s history,” said Carmody. “The effort involved migrating critical patient information and clinical data from legacy systems into Epic, including health records that support care delivery, scheduling, orders, results, and other operational workflows. The project also required integration with hundreds of supporting applications, devices, and systems throughout hospitals and physician offices.”

It also entailed migrating five years worth of “critical patient data,” he said.

The first wave of the transition — which included all UPMC hospitals and practices in Central Pennsylvania, New York and Maryland — began in September 2025. The second — which includes all facilities in Western Pennsylvania — went live on Saturday.

According to Carmody, known issues were isolated to specific workflows, departments, devices and operational areas, as opposed to occurring systemwide.

“As with any implementation of this magnitude, UPMC anticipated a stabilization period following golive,” he said.

They encountered a number of problems expected in a major technical change: workflow adjustments, configuration updates, process refinements and isolated technical issues. “These are the types of issues normally addressed during the early days following a major [electronic health record] implementation,” he said.

He confirmed that some patients are seeing longer than normal wait times.

“Whenever a health system of UPMC’s size transitions to a new electronic health record, some workflows may take longer as staff adapt to a new platform and processes,” said Carmody. “UPMC prepared extensively for this transition and has deployed significant on-site support resources to assist staff during the stabilization period. While there may be isolated instances where processes take additional time as users become familiar with the new system, teams continue to focus on minimizing disruption while maintaining safe, high-quality care.”

Throughout the weekend, patients lodged complaints on social media.

In the Pittsburgh section of the platform Reddit, a user called ChimleySwift said “my PCP’s name has largely vanished from my page. The name showing as my PCP is someone who left UPMC nearly 2 years ago. It is impossible to contact anybody from my PCP’s office now through the portal.” (Reddit posters generally use pseudonyms.)

On Monday, a Reddit user posting in the Pittsburgh forum said “I can’t log in to my portal at all.” Five other accounts commented that they had seen the same issue. “It doesn’t recognize my username, email or phone number and when I try to create a new account, it tells me that I can’t and I need to call customer service,” the user continued. “Of course they were closed over the weekend and now that it’s Monday, I’ve been on hold for about 30 minutes.”

One user lamented losing direct and easy access to medical records from beyond the five-year mark.

“All my results from years ago are basically gone, which I kinda … need for my continual of care stuff?” said one. “Like my blood clotting disease test results, completely gone. X-rays, CTs, MRIs, everything like that, basically all of it’s gone.”

Those experiences, however, were not universal.

“Mine is working fine,” said one Reddit user. “Tech transitions never go 100% smoothly. If it’s still not working for you on Monday, open a ticket with the UPMC customer tech team.”

A user identifying as a UPMC employee urged patience.

“Don’t even think about using the portal for, like, a week,” the Reddit poster said on Saturday. “And PLEASE be nice to hospital staff and your providers/their staff — we’re all a mess.”

Carmody outlined the potential duration of the in-progress adjustment window as continuing in the “days and weeks” following bringing the transition live.

“During this time, teams closely monitor system performance, gather user feedback and address issues as they are identified,” said Carmody.

While most all UPMC facilities have now made or are currently making the transition, phases to come will include bringing UPMC Washington & Greene and UPMC Trinity into the fold in “future years,” he said.